What's an effective AI prompt for drafting a client intake questionnaire for a new legal matter

The Prompt

Draft a client intake questionnaire for a new [practice area, e.g., employment dispute / estate planning / small business formation] matter.

Cover: the facts needed to assess the matter, timeline of relevant events, documents the client should bring, and any conflict-check information needed up front.
Group questions logically and keep language plain — this goes to the client, not another attorney.

Why This Prompt Works

A well-structured intake questionnaire front-loads exactly the facts and documents an attorney needs before the first real consultation, which shortens that meeting and reduces the odds of a second document-gathering round trip.

How to Customize It

Add the specific statute-of-limitations-relevant dates for your practice area at the top — those are the facts most time-sensitive to capture immediately, and a client filling out a generic form has no way to know which of their answers is actually racing a deadline.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Don’t skip the conflict-check section — collecting adverse-party names before engagement is a basic ethical safeguard the questionnaire should support, not an afterthought. Also avoid asking for more documents than the initial assessment actually needs; an intake form that feels like a full document production request discourages prospective clients from finishing it, and detailed document collection can usually wait until after engagement.

Bottom Line

A good intake-questionnaire prompt is organized around what the attorney needs to know first, written in language the client can actually answer without guidance.